Malloreddus Pasta with Basil Pesto

Legend says, pesto was created out of boredom from a plain pasta. This recipe is far from boring and brings delicious basil flavor to the Sardinian gnocchi.

Photo by G. Giustolisi

Pesto has been used since the Roman times. The recipe, as we know it today, dates back to the nineteenth century. Extra virgin olive oil, basil (brought by the Arabs in the Mediterranean), pine nuts and cheese, mixed together and pounded in a mortar, gave birth to one of the most famous and popular sauces in the world. A sauce that brings colors and flavors of the Italian Riviera.

Legend says there was a monastery near Genoa, where the creation of pesto took place by a priest at St. Basil’s. The priest, tired of the usual meal, picked up the basil growing around, combined it with the few ingredients offered by the faithful and mashed the ingredients together and created the first pesto.

I made this recipe with “Malloreddus”, or Sardinian gnocchi, the traditional pasta of Sardinia Island. The name, “Malloreddu”, which means “bull” in Southern Sardinia (so the plural, “malloreddus”, means “calves”) comes from the shape and texture of dense pasta made with durum wheat semolina.

Veronica is a born and raised Italian. She inherited her love for travel, passion for cooking and natural, sustainable, healthy slow food from her parents. Her works have appeared in ‘Vegetarian Living’, ‘Veggie Magazine’, ‘Lifestyle food’, ‘Australian Good Food & Travel Guide’, ‘Chickpea’ and ‘Free from Heaven’, among others. She is the author of “Panini: the simple tastes of Italian style bread”; ‘The Rustic Italian bakery”, “The Vegetarian Italian Kitchen” and “A Modern Italian table”, published by New Holland Publishers Australia.